Yes. If the pharmacy is on the route home, the stop is included in the ride and we wait while you get the prescription. A pharmacy well off the route adds mileage at $2 a mile. Tell us which pharmacy when you book so we can price it once instead of twice.

Why is the prescription not already waiting for you?

Because sent is not the same as filled. Prescriptions in Massachusetts are normally transmitted to the pharmacy electronically, including pain medication, and that happens at discharge or shortly before. The pharmacy still has to fill it, and it may be behind ten other people. Some medications also mean the patient has to be present. So the prescription exists at four o'clock and is not in your hand at four o'clock.

The failure people actually experience is getting home, settling in, feeling the anesthetic wear off around eight in the evening, and realizing the medication is still three miles away and they cannot drive. One stop on the way home prevents that entire night.

Try this first and skip the stop entirely

Ask whether the hospital's own outpatient pharmacy can fill it before you are discharged. Most of the large Boston hospitals have one in the building. If your nurse sends the prescription there instead of to your neighborhood pharmacy, somebody can collect it while you are still being monitored, and you leave with the bag in your lap. Ask the day before, not at discharge, because the answer depends on the medication and their hours.

If that works, you have saved yourself a stop and saved us a detour. We would rather tell you that than charge you for the extra miles.

Who signs you out, the driver or an escort?

These are two different services and it matters, because hospitals treat them differently. A driver meets you at the door. An escort comes inside, waits, is named as the responsible adult, takes the discharge instructions in writing, handles the sign out, and stays with you at home if you want that.

If you had sedation or general anesthesia, most Massachusetts hospitals and surgical centers will not release you to a taxi or a rideshare, and will not release you to somebody who only pulls up outside. They want a named adult who came in. Ask your own pre-op nurse the exact question: will a hired escort satisfy your discharge requirement. Most say yes. Ask now, not the morning of.

What does each part cost?

• The ride. $115 each way, or $230 round trip, within five miles of one of our offices, then $2 a mile. A pharmacy stop on the route is included. Waiting at the pharmacy is included.
• The escort. $45 an hour, billed for the time our person is with you, including the time waiting inside the hospital. This is separate from the ride fare. If you want somebody inside at sign out, say so when you book, because the fare alone does not cover it.
• The first night at home. $540 for a twelve hour overnight, if you live alone and do not want to be by yourself the first night.
• Front steps with no ramp. $200 for two trained staff and a motorized stair chair, if you are coming home in a wheelchair.

We publish these. Almost nobody else does, and that is the main reason people call us instead of getting three quotes.

What if the discharge time moves?

It usually does, and that is normal. Book on your best estimate, then call us with the real time once the hospital confirms it, which is often at your pre-op call a few days before. We hold the slot on the estimate and move it when you tell us. You will get a written confirmation either way, so the address, the pharmacy and the time are on paper and not in somebody's memory.

What if you cannot chew or talk easily afterward?

Say so before the day. After oral and jaw surgery, chewing and speaking can both be difficult for a while, so two things are worth sorting in advance. Ask your surgeon whether the medication can be prescribed in a liquid or dissolvable form, because swallowing a tablet may not be realistic. And tell us, so the person picking you up is not asking you questions you cannot answer and is carrying the written discharge sheet instead.

What do you need to tell us to book it?

• The hospital and, if you know it, the discharge unit or entrance.
• The drop off address.
• Which pharmacy, and whether it is near the route or near your house.
• Your best estimate of the discharge time.
• Whether you want somebody inside for the sign out, or just the ride.
• Whether you will be walking, in a wheelchair, and whether there are steps at your door.

Where do you go?

We work out of Woburn, Brockton and Springfield and run discharge rides out of the Boston hospitals, Lahey, Newton-Wellesley, Baystate and most points in between. Call 781-957-8076 . Booking by phone takes about three minutes and you can also do it on the website.

This page is general information about arranging transportation and escort services, not medical advice. Follow your surgical team's instructions.